Arts + Culture

Playfully Inspired

St. Joe’s new children's museum turns everyday play into imagination-powered discovery. Article by Diana Lambdin Meyer | Photography by Bruce N. Meyer There’s a new lemonade stand in downtown St. Joseph, perfect for visiting on a hot summer day or any time of the year. It’s not going anywhere. The lemonade stand has become one of the more popular activities at inspireU , a new children’s museum at the corner of Fifth and Felix streets downtown. Four stories of exhibits and activities...

Arts + Culture

Art Starts Here

Orange Easel gives young creators a space to explore, express, and thrive Article by Katie Currid | Photography by Courtesy of Orange Easel When Allison May Jensen launched an art studio in her basement in 2012, she had no grand plan — just a passion for art and a deep desire to give children what her childhood art teacher, Mrs. Funk, once gave her: a space to create freely and feel seen as an artist. From those humble roots, Orange Easel has grown into one of the Northland’s most beloved...

Home + Design

Kids Live Here

A Lake Waukomis home blends style with kid-friendliness Article by Katie Currid | Photography by Hannah Schreiner When Carly and Brady Skjervem bought their Lake Waukomis home in 2022, they knew it had the bones to become something special. As seasoned renovators, they’d gutted and overhauled homes together before, but this time was different. “This was our first house that hasn’t been a full reno,” Carly says. “The base of the home was so great.”  The Lake Waukomis home was actually the...

Local Services

Dizzying Heights

Locals of all ages build grit, trust, and belief in themselves at Altitude Sports Performance Article and Photography by Jennifer Kirby You walk into the Parkville Athletic Complex on a sweltering summer day to discover the sound of barked encouragement, clinking of sports gear, and the gentle hum of the air conditioning. The place seems mostly empty, but as you descend the staircase, you find a baseball team on one knee in a semicircle around their animated coach. He’s swinging his arms and...

Life + Culture

Etiquette: People Over Perfection

Top Ten Etiquette Tips for Children Article by Amanda Wagner | Photography by Angi’s Art LLC Manners are for everyone. The original purpose of etiquette was to make people feel comfortable in any situation. By establishing clear expectations, etiquette allowed individuals to navigate social settings with confidence. If you found yourself in a room full of strangers, you did not need to feel anxious or fear embarrassment; you knew the rules, and that knowledge provided reassurance. Etiquette...

Arts + Culture

Bentonville

The Northwest Arkansas city is more than Walmart's birthplace Article by Patrick Mulvihill | Photography by Anna Petrow Summertime is already halfway through, and if you haven’t piled into the family van and hit the open road, all hope is not lost. The great American road trip doesn’t have to take you to another time zone, after all—it could just take you south of the (Missouri) border to our neighbors in the Natural State. Just a three-hour drive from Kansas City, Bentonville in northwest...

Travel

Where the Bison Roam

A two-hour drive from Kansas City leads you to untouched tall grass prairie and adventure Article by Diana Lambdin Meyer | Photography by Bruce N. Meyer “Where are the bison today?” That’s usually the first question park rangers receive as guests arrive at the visitors’ center at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Chase County Kansas. As big as they are, an average of 2,400 pounds, you would think a herd of 110 American bison would be visible from anywhere. But here’s the thing...

Home + Design

Backyard Magic

A Liberty family business brings backyard visions to life Article by Katie Currid | Photography by Provided When Jennifer Shreckengost left her career in education after 20 years, she didn’t imagine she’d end up back in the family business. But it’s exactly where she was meant to be. Jennifer and her husband officially bought Tiger Pool & Patio from her dad in 2021, though the family legacy started with her father much earlier in 1981. And while Jennifer didn’t grow up in the trenches of the...

Food + Beverage

Scoop, There It Is

Take an adventure with Northland ice cream flavors this summer Article by Katie Currid | Photography by Hannah Schreiner It’s July, and if you’re going to beat the heat, there better be a pool or some cold treats involved. We love a standard vanilla cone as much as anyone, but sometimes it’s fun to get out of your comfort zone and try something a little more adventurous. Good news is you don’t have to plan a whole trip to have an adventure — you can just try something new! And during the...

Arts + Culture

Barrel Aged

Timeless craftsmanship lives on in Liberty Article by Tiffany Killoren | Photography by Hannah Schreiner To those unfamiliar with the term,  coopering  sounds like a made-up word or something only chicken owners understand (coopering the coop, perhaps?) Both are wildly inaccurate. The term  coopering  and, in turn,  coopers , refers to the centuries-old craft of making wooden barrels and the artisans skilled in doing so. Coopers played a pivotal role in history. The transportation of cargo...